Forever May Not Be Long Enough
by Redluna
Summary: Two loves destoryed within ancient Egypt are reborn once again. But can their tragic ends truly be changed?  Not slash.
1. The Past

**This is a highly AU version of the Mummy that I have been working on with a friend of mine on here, IFoundHopeInHateForMe. The plot will be a little different from the orginial in some ways, but I hope that will be what you like about it.**

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><p><em>1290 BC<em>

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><p>A hush fell over the court as Isis, the youngest daughter of the pharaoh, Seti I, knelt down before her father. All those present knew the reason why she was here. As a princess it was expected for her to marry someone from a noble line, but Isis had forsaken her duties for the heart of a Medjai. It may have been better if she had chosen a lower placed guards, one that no one would notice, but Isis had had to choose none other than Ardeth, one of the most respected leaders of the Medjai. However, despite all the dangers, the lovers had managed to hide their romance for a total of two years. They may have even succeeded in keeping their secret for even longer if had not been for the woman who was soon to become the pharaoh's new wife-Anck-su-Namun.<p>

It was she who brought forth the evidence that condemned the two lovers and told Seti where he should go to discover them in the act itself.

When Seti discovered the truth behind the allegations that Anck-su-Namun had brought forward, he flew into a fury. He summoned the guards to drag Isis down to the dudgeons before grabbing Ardeth, hauling him away to his private chambers.

Nefertiti was informed of what had happened by one of her maids the next morning and had tried to plead to her father on her sister's behalf. Seti refused to hear anything that had to do with the fallen Isis, however, and had sent Nefertiti away before she was even able to say more than a sentence.

Nefertiti then fled to the apartments of the pharaoh's mistress and the younger sister of Anck-su-Namun, Amisi, begging her to persuade the pharaoh where she had failed, but the young woman was turned away before she even arrived at the door to Seti's chambers. Nefertiti had crumpled into despair when Amisi returned, knowing that if she had failed as well then there was nothing to save her sister.

Everyone had known that when Seti passed a sentence upon the lovers it would be a direr one, but no one ever imagined that it would be something like this. Most of the people had imagine that Ardeth would be the one to bear the true punishment with the princess being allowed to escape with a less serve penalty. However, it seemed that even his own daughter would not be spared from Seti's wrath.

He had ordered Ardeth to atone for his treason against the throne by beheading the princess before the court. It was suppose to be a public sign of him renouncing his affections for Isis, but many of those in the court just saw it as an act of cruelty on Seti's part.

Seti didn't even bother to spare his daughter a glance as he rose from his throne and held the sword out to Ardeth. The man's face betrayed no emotion as he took the blade from his ruler, although his eyes did dart down towards Isis, who was staring straight ahead with a look of complete calm on her face.

Seti shook his head with a sigh as he regarded the girl before him. "I do not understand why you had to soil your life in such a way," He murmured. "Would you not have been more content with your true match in this life? Someone from a line as royal as your own?"

Isis lifted her eyes upwards to meet with those of her father's. "I will go to my death with the knowledge that I have already discovered my true match," She said. The corners of her mouth turned up into a small smile. "Forever may not be long enough for our love."

Then those dark eyes slid shut, the blade whistling as it cut through the air behind her and then her neck.

Nefertiti released a cry of pure agony as her sister's head fell onto the ground. She nearly lunged at her father until Amisi leapt up to hold her back, cradling the princess in her arms as she sobbed.

Anck-su-Namun rose from her own chair with a glimmer of satisfaction in her eyes as she regarded the fallen body of the former princess.

Seti stared down at the head that lay at his feet, the one that had once belonged to his own precious daughter, for a few moments before turning around to rejoin the rest of the royal family.

He hardly taken a few steps, however, before the horrible sound of ripping flesh erupted throughout the court, causing him to whirl back around as cries erupted from those assembled.

Ardeth had thrust the same sword that he had just used to kill his lover, through his chest, and was now falling to his knees as blood gushed from the wound.

The pleased look had fled from Anck-su-Namun's face now as her mouth fall open in shock with the rest of the court. "_What_?" She cried.

Ardeth turned his eyes toward the pharaoh, a shaky smile fixed on his lips. "I am sorry, my pharaoh," He said, "but there is only one person who can rule over me and I choose to follow her to the underworld." He released a short gasp as his eyes glazed over before he fell to the ground besides the decapitated body of his lover.

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><p>Imhotep could see Amisi pacing behind the sheer golden curtains that concealed her bedchamber as he entered her rooms. He nodded towards his priests who scurried off to close the doors and stand watch as they always did during such visits.<p>

Once he was certain that the door was secure, he strode off towards the bedchamber. He made barely a sound as he brushed the curtains aside, but Amisi must have heard him somehow for she turned as he approached. Her eyes were rimmed with red and the skin around them was puffy.

"Imhotep…" The corners of her lips twitched in a weak attempt at a smile. "I didn't think that you would come tonight."

"I always come to you," Imhotep said. "And I knew that you would want me here with you."

"You are right, as always…" Amisi trailed off, a faint tremble taking her over. "I can't believe he did that to his own daughter. A child of his own _blood_! How could he have been so cruel?"

"Amisi." Imhotep breathed her name as he moved towards her. He wrapped his hand around her arms, drawing her in closer to him. He couldn't think of anything that would soothe her. Even he hadn't expected Seti to have gone so far in punishing the couple.

"If he could do something like that to his own child," Amisi murmured, "then what do you think would happen to us?"

"Don't speak of such things," Imhotep said. "Seti will never discover anything about us." He pressed a kiss to her temple. "Besides, soon we won't have to worry about him anymore."

Amisi glanced up to him from underneath a furrowed brow. "What do you mean?" She asked. Her mouth twisted into a frown. "You're planning something aren't you?"

"Yes."

Anck-su-Namun had been the one who inspired such an idea. The woman might have been the wife of the pharaoh, but she had been after him ever since she had arrived at the palace. He could admit that she was a beautiful woman, it would take a blind man not to see that, but he was repelled by her coldness. He knew that he could never be with a woman like her, but she still pursued him, no matter what he did.

It had been during one of those moments, when she had caught him on his way to see the pharaoh, that she had placed the idea into his head. She had been suggesting that if her husband were to die then she would be a free woman and not only that but since she had been the first wife, she would be the next to sit on the throne. She continued on, but he hadn't been listening to her by that point, a plan already formulating in his head.

"What is it?" Amisi asked. When he remained silent, she sighed, brushing her fingers across his cheek. "You've never kept a secret from me before."

Imhotep should have known better than to have tried to hide something from her. She had always seemed to possess some strange ability to see through him. He whispered the confession to her, for it was something that he hadn't dared to speak of until now. "I am going to kill Seti."

Amisi recoiled from him the moment the words had left his mouth, staring at him wide eyes. "Are you _mad_! You would never get away with such a thing!"

"Why wouldn't I?" Imhotep asked. "I am closest adviser of the pharaoh! He trusts me above all of the others. If anyone would be able to get away with such an act it would be me."

"It's still too dangerous!" Amisi shook her head frantically at him. "If you were to be caught…."

"That won't happen," Imhotep said. He caught her hands with his own, clasping them tightly. "Just think of how it would be. If Seti were gone, there would be no need for us to meet in secret like this. You could change everything once your on the throne."

"But I won't be allowed to take the throne," Amisi said. "That's reserved for the first wife."

"Such things can be changed," Imhotep said. "I'm sure that the royal siblings will be more in favor of having you on the throne than allowing Anck-su-Namun anywhere near it."

He was about to continue when he heard a sound like the shuffling off cloth. His head snapped up, eyes scanning to see if anyone was there. He caught sight of a dark shadow for a moment, but it disappeared so quickly that he convinced himself that it had been nothing.

Then he heard the sound of the doors being thrown open and a far too familiar voice echoed throughout the chamber, demanding to know what his priests were doing there.

"It's the pharaoh!" Amisi cried. "You must hide!" She dragged him towards the curtains behind them, pressing a quick kiss to his mouth before drawing the drapes shut around him. She threw herself onto the couch in the center of the room just as Seti tore open the curtains and marched inside.

Seti gave her a smile as he approached, holding his hands out once he reached the couch. Amisi did her best to hide the tension in her own smile as she slid her hands into the ones offered and allowed the pharaoh to raise her to her feet.

She was preparing herself to play the role of the mistress again when Seti suddenly tore his hands away from hers. "My pharaoh?" She reached out towards him but he backed away from her, pointing at her with fury in his eyes.

"Someone has touched you!" He hissed.

Amisi gasped, her eyes darting down towards her arms where the ink that made up her outfit as the pharaoh's mistress had been smudged all across the skin. She stumbled away from Seti as he advanced on her in a rage, drawing the sword that he always kept at his side.

"How could you have betrayed me like this?" He shouted.

"No!" Amisi cried. "Please, my pharaoh, I can explain…" She trailed off as Imhotep appeared behind the pharaoh.

Seti spun around to see what her gaze had gone to and frowned when he saw Imhotep. "Imhotep?" He said. "My priest?"

Imhotep made no response, his hand darting out to grab the sword from Seti's hands, plunging it into the pharaoh, not giving him the chance to defend himself.

Amisi let out a cry as the body of the pharaoh fell to the ground, her hands flying to her mouth. She took a step towards Imhotep, hands outstretched, when a searing pain erupted in her back. She turned her head to find Anck-su-Namun standing behind her. "Sister…?"

"You always were a nuisance," Anck-su-Namun said.

Amisi opened her mouth to retort but paused as she felt something trickling down her back. She reached back with a trembling hand, gasping as her fingers touched the handle of a dagger.

"Amisi!" Imhotep caught her in his arms as she crumpled to the ground. He shook his head frantically, tears threatening to escape from his eyes. "No, this wasn't how it was suppose to be."

Amisi pressed a finger against his lips to silence him, her eyes surprisingly tender. "Hush, my love," She whispered. "Are you not the Keeper of the Dead? I am not afraid for I know that it will not be long before I am in your arms again."

"Yes," Imhotep said. "I will rescue your soul from the grasp of the Underworld. Death itself will not be able to keep us apart."

"I will wait for you," Amisi replied. Then her finger slipped away from his mouth as her eyes closed for the final time.

Imhotep heard the pad of footsteps as Anck-su-Namun approached and he thrust the sword in his hand towards her. "You will pay for what you have done!" He hissed at her shocked face.

Anck-su-Namun seemed ready to stammer out an excuse for what she had done when her eyes flitted towards the doors that still hung open, beyond which a group of people could be heard rushing towards the chamber.

"The Medjai," Anck-su-Namun murmured. Then her lips curved into a cunning smirk, eyes gleaming with cruelty as the pharaoh's bodyguards appeared in the doorway. "Medjai!" She cried. "You must help me!" She thrust a finger at Imhotep as she staggered away from him, as though she was horrified of him. "He has murdered the pharaoh and my sister! He means to kill me next!"

Imhotep was tempted to strike her down with the sword, putting an end to her wicked ways, but he had made a promise to Amisi; one that required him to remain alive. So he cast the blade down on the ground before running out of the chambers through the entrance hidden in the back, his priests following after him.

Imhotep remained in hiding throughout the weeks that the royal burial was being planned. Isis was to be laid to rest with all the honors of a princess, despite the indiscretions that had lead to her death. Her lover, Ardeth, didn't receive the same treatment, however. His body was handed over to his fellow Medjai to dispose of themselves. It would be unthinkable for them to bury him anywhere near the woman he had loved so passionately, however much they may want to, so he had to be placed within an unmarked grave.

Anck-su-Namun seemed determined to seek revenge upon her sister to the grave, however. She convinced the royal children that remained that it would be honorable to bury the pharaoh and his mistress within the same tomb. After all, by her accounts, Amisi had been killed while trying to stop the murder. The two were portrayed as powerful lovers and buried as such. It came across as a great show of respect, but was recognized as a last insult to those who knew the truth.

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><p>Imhotep waited only until the night after Isis had been buried to sneak into her crypt with the aid of his priests to steal her body. They carried her corpse off to Hamunaptra, City of the Dead, burial ground of the sons of pharaoh's and resting place for the wealth of Egypt.<p>

It was there that he dared the gods' anger by going deep into the city, taking the black Book of the Dead from its holy resting place. He knew that an act such as the one he was about to perform could permanently doom his soul, but in this case it was not his own that he was worried about saving.

He let no one else lay their hands upon Amisi's body, placing her down upon the altar himself. However, he did allow his priests to arrange the five sacred canopic jars around her. Her soul had been sent down to the dark reaches of the underworld and only the power within the book that Imhotep held could bring it back.

He opened the book to recite the words, his priests going in on the chant moments after. They did not have long to wait for a heavy mist to rise from the dark waters before them, heading swiftly towards the altar. It settled down over the body there like a second skin before disappearing completely. It was at this instant that Amisi's eyes snapped open, her mouth falling open to let out a shuttering breath.

Imhotep felt a rush of elation rush through his system as he rose a knife into the air. He would just have to commit the final act of reenacting what had caused her death and her resurrection would be complete. He was about to do just that when arms wrapped around him, pulling him away from the altar. He whipped his head around to see the Medjai surrounding his priests, forcing them to give up their chanting through the threat of the sword. His eyes snapped back to the altar as he heard a faint sigh.

Amisi's eyes were falling shut again as the mist rose back above her body again. It burst up into the air a second later, releasing an unearthly cry of anguish before plunging back into the water.

Imhotep was still screaming out for his lost love, unable to believe that he had failed, even as the Medjai pulled him away.

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><p>Ramses didn't look kindly upon those that defiled the resting place of a woman whom he had considered as a part of his own family. He condemned Imhotep's priests to be mummified alive. As for the man himself, he was forced to endure the Hom Dai, the worst of all ancient curses, one so horrible it had never before been preformed.<p>

Nefertiti agreed with her brother's actions, thinking the punishment only proper for a man who had dared to desecrate the tomb of so great a woman. It had been expected that Anck-su-Namun would have a similar reaction since she had been the one to alert the Medjai as to what Imhotep was planning and should be glad that her sister had been rescued from such a fate. However, she had barely been informed of what had happened before grabbing a knife from somewhere and stabbing herself without anyone being able to stop her. It didn't take long for her burial to commence, although the royal siblings thought it would be best to place her in a separate crypt then the one that held their father and Amisi.

Imhotep was to remain sealed within his sarcophagus, the undead for all eternity. The Medjai would never allow him to be released, for he would arise a walking disease, a plague upon mankind. An unholy flesh eater with the strength of ages, power over the sands, and the glory of invincibility.


	2. Discoveries

**Thank you very much to those that reviewed! I'm glad that you seem to be enjoying this so far. **

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><p><em>1923<em>

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><p>Tessa was sitting at a desk in the library of the museum, sorting out the books that surrounded her into alphabetical stacks. It wasn't an interesting task but it was easy to fall into the rhythm of it. This was why she wound up dropping one of the books she picked up back onto the able after hearing a clatter from somewhere. She glanced over at her older sister, Evy, to see if she had been the one to make the sound, only to find herself being looked at in the same way. Then the sound came again from somewhere in the back room, which served as a storage space.<p>

"Oh, goodness sake!" Evy exclaimed. "What could that be?"

"More like who." Tessa pushed her chair away from the desk before standing up with a sigh. "We better go see what's going on back there."

Evy nodded before heading off towards the back with her sister following after her. She lingered on the threshold of the room before grabbing a torch from one of the statues. Then she began to wander cautiously inside, sending her sister a stern look to make sure she kept the same pace. "Abdul?" She ventured. "Muhammad?"

"Bob?" Tessa called.

Evy was about to roll her eyes at the use of the name when there came a sound from right beside the two of them. She whirled around to face it, sending her sister a sharp glance as the girl slipped around her to move towards it. She hurried quickly after her, not wanting the other to get harmed if it there was anything dangerous awaiting them. She stopped before one of the open sarcophagus as Tessa did so and was about to peer down into it when its withered occupant popped right up at her.

The girls clutched at each other as they went stumbling backwards, only to glare at the man that came up laughing right after the mummy.

"Bloody hell, Jonathan!" Tessa exclaimed. "I could kill you for that!"

Her brother slung his arm casually around the mummy besides him. "You know what? I think you've been threatening me with the same thing ever since you could talk."

"Have you no respect for the dead?" Evy demanded. She stuck the torch into one of the holders built into the sarcophagus so that she could cross her arms over her chest in disapproval.

"Of course I do," Jonathan said, "but sometimes…" He paused to pat the mummy on the back like an old friend. "I would rather like to join them."

"Well, I wish you would do it sooner rather than later," Evy said, "before you ruin my career the way you've ruined yours." She leaned the mummy carefully back into the sarcophagus before whacking her brother on the cheek. The small giggle the action earned from her younger sister was enough to make her smile faintly, if only for a moment. "Now get out."

"My dear, sweet baby sisters, I'll have you know…" Jonathan's words slurred slightly towards the end as he swung his legs over the edge of the sarcophagus with the swagger of someone who had to be at least a little tipsy. "My career is on a high note."

"High note, ha!" Evy snapped. "Oh, Jonathan, I'm really not in the mood for you today. There are mountains of work still to be done in the library and…and the Bembridge scholars have rejected my application form again! They say I don't have enough experience in the field."

Jonathan shifted his gaze towards Tessa, who tilted her head towards Evy with a resigned expression. Both knew that their sister had been trying to get accepted into the fold of the Bembridge scholars for years now with similar results, each rejection seeming to leave her more dishearten then the next.

Jonathan moved forward to take Evy's hands in his own with a small smile. "You'll always have me, old mum," He promised.

Tessa grinned as she bumped her shoulder gently against her sister's own. "And me," She added.

"Ah, that's my girls!" Jonathan crooked a finger under each of their chins in turn. "Now, I have just the thing to cheer you up!" He turned back to the sarcophagus, rummaging around in it for something he had left behind.

"Oh, no, Jonathan," Evy said, "not another worthless trinket. If I have to take one more piece of junk to the curator to try and sell for you…" She trailed off as her brother held a small, metal box under her nose. She took it from his hand with careful fingers, turning it around to get a better look. "Jonathan, where did you get this?"

"Ah, in a dig down in Thebes," Jonathan said. "My whole life I've never found anything, Evy. Please, tell me I found something."

Evy didn't answer him straight away. Instead she turned the box over, pressing the sides together and letting out a gasp as it fell open like a star to reveal a piece of paper folded up inside. "Jonathan, I think you found something," She breathed.

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><p>Tessa moved forward as Evy unfolded the parchment across the desk of Dr. Terrence Bey, the curator of the museum, to reveal the map that the Carnahan siblings had found. "You see that cartouche there? It's the official royal seal of Seti I, I'm sure of it." She had studied enough Egyptian history to know this, but it felt like something more as well. It was as if she would have noticed the cartouche anywhere.<p>

"Perhaps," Dr. Bey said.

"Two questions," Jonathan said. "Who the hell was Seti I and was he rich?"

"He was the second pharaoh of the ninth dynasty," Evy said, "said to be the wealthiest pharaoh of them all."

"Good," Jonathan grinned. "That's good. I like this fellow, I like him _very _much."

Tessa shifted on her feet, unable to explain why her reaction to Seti was the exact opposite of the one her brother showed. If the map was related back to him in someway and he was actually as rich as was claimed then she should be equally as happy, not prickling with dislike.

"I've already dated the map," Evy said, "it's more then three thousand years old. And if you look at the hieratic…well, it's Hamunaptra."

Jonathan took a step forward with awe written across his features, but Tessa fell back as if she had been punched. It felt like something cold had settled across her skin, tempering the burst of joy that swelled within at hearing the name of the city.

"Dear God, don't be ridiculous," Dr. Bey exclaimed. "We're scholars not treasure hunters. Hamunaptra is a myth told by Arab storytellers to amuse Greek and Roman tourists."

"But it's not a myth!" Tessa pressed her hand over her mouth as the other three looked up at her in surprise. She had no idea what the hell had come over her!

Evy scrambled to make sense of her sister's outcry. "We know all the silly blather about the city being protected by a curse of a mummy nonsense, but my research has lead me to believe that the city itself may have actually existed."

"Are we talking about _the_ Hamunaptra?" Jonathan asked.

"Yes, the City of the Dead," Evy said, "where the earliest pharaohs were said to have hidden the wealth of Egypt."

"In a big underground treasure chamber," Jonathan said. He scowled at Dr. Bey as the man let out a snort. "Oh, come on, everyone knows the story! The entire metropolis was rigged to sink under the sand at the pharaoh's command. Just a flick of the switch and the whole city would sink beneath the sand dunes, taking the treasure with it."

"Yes, as the Americans would say it's all magic and hocus pocus…" Dr. Bey trailed off with a small cry as the corner of the map caught on the small flame from the nearby oil lamp. "My goodness, look at that!" He dropped it to the ground with the older Carnahan siblings rushing to put it out.

"You've brunt it," Jonathan said. "You've brunt off a part of the lost city!"

"It's for the best I'm sure," Dr. Bey said. "Many men have wasted their lives in the foolish pursuit of Hamunaptra. No one ever found it, most have never returned."

Tessa could already tell that such a warning wouldn't be enough to stop her siblings. And, if she were honest, it couldn't convince her either.

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><p><strong>I know that this chapter is short, but I promise that the next one will be longer.<strong>


	3. Finding the Path

**I'm glad that all of you seem to be enjoying this so far!**

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><p>Warden Gad Hassan greeted the Carnahan siblings warmly upon their entrance into the Cairo prison, but it didn't make the experience any better for either of the girls.<p>

"You told that you got it in a dig down in Thebes!" Evy hissed.

"Yes, well, I was mistaken," Jonathan said.

"You mean you _lied_," Tessa shot back.

"I lie to everyone," Jonathan said. "What makes you so special?"

"We're your sisters," Evy snapped.

"Yes, well, that just makes you more gullible," Jonathan said.

Evy finally lost what was left of her temper at this. "Jonathan, you stole it from a drunk at the local casbah!"

"Picked his pocket, actually," Jonathan said. "So, I don't think-" He tried to turn around only to have his sisters whirl him back around.

"Oh, don't be so ridiculous," Evy said.

Tessa slid her arm out of her brother's grip to move towards Hassan, who was standing outside the bars of an outdoor cell. "What exactly is this man in prison for?" She asked.

"When I heard you were coming, I asked him that myself," Hassan replied.

"And what did he say?" Evy pressed.

"He was just looking for a good time," Hassan said.

The door burst open an instant later to reveal a man who was forced onto his knees behind the bars by two guards.

"This…this is the man that you stole it from?" Evy said.

"Yes, exactly," Jonathan said. "So, why don't we just-" He was cut off by a question coming from the cell.

"Who are you?" The man paused for a moment, his gaze shifting towards the girls. "And who's the broads?"

"Broads?" Evy sputtered.

"I'm just local sort of missionary chap," Jonathan said, "spreading the good word and all that. But these are my sisters, Evy and Tessa." He ushered both of the girls up by a hand on their elbows.

"Oh, well, guess they're not total losses," The man said.

Evy stepped in front of her sister, not wanting the younger near such a person. "I beg your pardon?" She demanded.

Hassan abruptly shouted something in Arabic. "Excuse me." Then he was marching off towards a part of the prison that needed his attention.

"Ask him about the map," Jonathan mutter to Evy.

"Um, hello, excuse me." Evy waited until the man's eyes were back on her. "We both found your puzzle box and we've come to ask you about it."

"No," The man said.

"No?" Evy echoed.

"No," The man repeated. "You came to ask me about Hamunaptra."

Tessa popped her head between her siblings shoulders at this. "How did you know the box contains to Hamunaptra?" She asked.

"Because that's where I was when I found it," The man said. "I was there."

Jonathan leaned in towards the bars of the cell. "And how do we now that's not a load of pig swallow?" He demanded.

"You know, do I know you?" The man asked.

"Oh, no," Jonathan said. "I've just got one of those faces."

The man wasn't to be fooled, however, as was evident in the way his eyes widened. A second later he was punching Jonathan in the face without warning, sending him sprawling onto the ground. One of the guards hit him across the back for doing so, but it didn't seem to matter much.

Evy stepped over her brother in order to get closer to the bars. "You were actually at Hamunaptra?"

"Yeah, I was there," The man grinned.

"You swear?" Evy pressed.

"Every damn day," The man said. He shook his head as Evy tried to speak again. "I know what you meant. Seti's place, I was there." He waved his hands mockingly in the air. "City of the Dead."

"Could you tell me how to get there?" Evy asked. "I mean, the exact location?"

"You want to know?" The man questioned.

"Well, yes," Evy said.

"Do you really want to know?"

"Yes." Evy hardly noticed how close her face had gotten to the bars, even when the man beckoned a finger at her. Then her chin was being grabbed so that her face could be yanked forward into a harsh kiss.

"Then get me the hell out of here!"

The man was dragged back through the door right after, leaving Tessa to whirl on Hassan as he returned. "Where are they taking him?" She demanded.

"To be hanged," Hassan answered. "Apparently, he had a very good time."

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><p>The Carnahan sisters had asked to be allowed to witness the hanging, which had won them seats in the warden's box with Hassan. Fortunately, such a place was an excellent one in which to debate the terms that they wanted.<p>

"I will give you one hundred pounds to free this man," Evy announced.

"I would pay one hundred pounds just to see him hanged," Hassan said.

"Two hundred pounds!" Tessa piped up.

"Proceed!" Hassan called down.

"Three hundred pounds," Evy offered.

The hanger shouted up to Hassan something in Arabic that made the man stare at him as though he were crazy. "Of course, we will not let him go!" He called down.

"Five hundred pounds!" Evy cried over him.

Hassan held a hand up towards the hanger. "Hold off on that," He instructed. "And what else? I am a very lonely man." He tried to slide his hand along Evy's thigh only to be whacked with her purse. He fared even worse when he tried it on the other sister, for she twisted his fingers back until he let go. He shouted out a command in Arabic a moment later.

Evy leapt up from her chair as her sister's hands flew to her mouth. "No!" She cried.

The hanger had already pulled the lever, however, causing the floor beneath the prisoner to give out. The man was left dangling now until the time his neck broke or the loss of oxygen became too much.

"Aha!" Hassan chuckled. "His neck did not break!" He turned towards Evy as the woman sat back down. "Oh, I'm so sorry, now we must watch him strangle to death."

"He knows the location of Hamunaptra," Tessa said.

Hassan's eyes were on her in a heartbeat. "You lie," He said.

"I would never!" Tessa shot back.

"Are you telling me this filthy son of a pig," Hassan said, "knows where to find the City of the Dead?"

"Yes," Tessa hissed.

"Truly?" Hassan demanded.

"Yes," Tessa snapped. "And if you cut him down we will give you ten percent."

"Fifty percent," Hassan countered.

"Twenty," Evy cut in.

"Forty."

"Thirty."

"Twenty-five."

"Ha, deal!" Evy cried out. She knew that her sister and her had managed to win the bargain now.

Obviously Hassan agreed for he pressed a hand to his head. "Ooh, cut him down!" He ordered.

* * *

><p>Tessa tossed her bags at Jonathan once the trio reached the boat waiting for them at the port. She found satisfaction in the grunt he let out as he caught them since he had carried none of his own luggage all the way there.<p>

"Do you really think he'll show?" Evy asked.

"Yes, probably, if you don't mind that," Jonathan said. "He maybe a cowboy but I know the greed, good as his word."

"Yes, well, personally," Evy said, "I think he's filthy, rude, a complete scoundrel. I didn't like him one bit."

"Anyone I know?"

Even Tessa couldn't stop her eyebrows from rising as the recently freed prisoner, Rick O'Connell, appeared behind them. He had trimmed his hair into a short, neat fashion and the beard he had formerly donned was gone now.

"Ah, well, you've changed," Evy said.

"That's one way to put it." Tessa giggled as her sister swatted at her with her hand.

"Smashing day to start an adventure, eh, O'Connell," Jonathan said.

"Yeah, smashing." Rick didn't seem to really believe this, however, and checked his wallet once he was through shaking hands with the other man.

"No, no, I'd never steal from a partner, partner," Jonathan promised.

"That reminds me, no hard feelings about the…" Rick trailed off, waving his fist to signify what he was talking about.

"Oh, no, happens all the time," Jonathan said.

"And he always deserves it," Tessa cut in.

Rick wagged his finger in her direction with a grin. "Now that I can believe." He turned towards Evy next as the woman began to talk to him.

"Mr. O'Connell, can you look me in the eye and grantee me that this isn't all just some kind of a film flam? Because if it is, I am warning you, I will—"

"You're warning me?" Rick said. "Lady, let me put it this way, my whole damn garrison believed this so much that without orders they march halfway across Libya and into Egypt to find that city. And when we got there all that we found was sand and blood." He nodded before bending down to grab the suitcases around Evy's feet. "Let me get your bags." Then he turned to carriage her luggage onto the ship without a word.

Tessa slid up to lean against her older sister. "Oh, yes, there's nothing about him to like at all." She let out a giggle at the look Evy cast her and soon the older one was grinning as well.

The moment was ruined, however, by the arrival of Hassan. "Right, good morning to all!"

Tessa made no effort to hide the way her nose wrinkled in annoyance at the sight of him. "Ugh, what are you doing here?" She demanded.

Hassan was already heading up the plank leading up to the ship as he answered. "I'm here to protect my investments. Thank you very much!"

Tessa spat a curse from the ancient Egyptians under her breath, making Evy roar with laughter as she heard it while Jonathan just looked confused.

"That's my girl," Evy said. She leaned in towards her sister conspiratorially. "Maybe if we're lucky his teeth will fall out by midnight."

* * *

><p>Tessa pushed herself up onto her feet once the water got shallow enough. She felt uncomfortably exposed in only her nightdress now that its thin fabric was stuck against her skin from the ocean. She glanced back at the burning ship behind her, silently bemoaning all of the things on it she had lost.<p>

Evy didn't keep her own frustration private, however. "We've lost everything! All of our tools, all the equipment! All of our clothes!" She, like her sister, had been preparing for bed when their strange attackers came onboard, which meant she was feeling just as awkward.

"O'Connell!"

Tessa turned around to see the weasel looking man she had seen Rick talking to earlier that night, standing on the other side of the river where the Americans were scurrying onto the shore with their own entourage. She was quite sure that she had heard him being called Beni.

"It looks to me like I've got all the horses!"

Rick hardly seemed bothered by such a declaration, though. "Hey, Beni, looks to me like you're on the wrong side of the river!"

It took Tessa a moment to catch on but once she did she had her hands braced on her knees as she laughed. She flashed a grin at Rick as he cast one at her over his shoulder. She found that she was glad that they had managed to bring him along with them. He had already proven how handy he was in a fight, but now she found herself glad that he could make her laugh during something that should have been so bad.


	4. Medjai Attack

**This chapter might seem a little like filler at first, but it has action in it later on, my dears.**

* * *

><p>Tessa ran her hand across the long, doglike snout of the statue in front of her. "This is the statue of Anubis," She said.<p>

Evy glanced up from the large silver disc shifting around to smile proudly at her little sister. "Very good, Tessa! Its feet go deep underground. According to the Bembridge scholars that's where we'll find a secret compartment containing the golden Book of Amun Ra." She shook her head as her eyes moved back over to her brother who was trying to work the other disc. "Jonathan, you're meant to catch the sun with that."

Tessa giggled under breath as she picked her way over the rocks to help their brother. She placed her hands over his, showing him the way that the disc had to move.

Evy was so concentrated on watching them that she didn't realize that Rick had moved towards her until he was right in front of her.

"So, what are these old mirrors for?" He asked.

"They're ancient mirrors," Evy corrected. "It's an ancient Egyptian trick, you'll see."

"Ah, here, these are for you." Rick reached behind himself to pull out a folded satchel made from brown leather. "Go ahead, it's something I bothered off our American brethren. I thought you might like it…might need it, for when you're down there." He made little motions with his hands like someone hammering to show what he meant.

Evy took the gift from him in confusion, unfolding it only to discover it to be full of nearly all of the tools she had been planning to use on the dig before they got lost. She looked up with a smile to thank Rick but he was already moving towards the opening they had made to get down bellow.

"What are you looking at?" He demanded of Tessa.

The girl hid her grin behind her hand as she turned away. "Oh, nothing," She promised.

Rick could tell that she was lying, but it amused him more than anything else. After all, he guessed that he should have known better than to think that he would be able to hide anything from the sister. The rather clueless brother maybe, but not the girl with her perceptive dark eyes.

* * *

><p>Evy felt a small thrill roll down her spine as their small party finally got bellow ground. "Do you understand we're standing inside a room that almost no one has entered in over three thousand years?" She hurried over to one of the silver discs identical to the ones up above, moving it into the proper position. "And then there was light." The sun from above caught the disc just like she had planned, reflecting off each of the ones bellow until the whole chamber was illuminated.<p>

"Hey, that is a neat trick," Rick admitted.

"Oh, my God, this is sah-netjer," Tessa said. "A preparation room."

"Preparation for what?" Rick asked.

Tessa lifted up her hands to make them into claws with a grin. "For entering the afterlife," She said.

Evy chuckled as she saw how confused Rick still looked. "This is where they prepared the mummies," She explained.

* * *

><p>Tessa might have been annoyed about being chased off away from their original dig site by a group of an American treasure hunters lead by the supposedly famed Egyptologist, Dr. Allen Chamberlain, if it weren't for the fact that Evy had managed to find a better spot. All four of them, minus Hassan, were standing on makeshift stools to chip away at the stone above them.<p>

"According to these hieroglyphics," Evy said, "we should be right bellow the statue. We should come up right between his legs."

"And when those damn Yanks go to sleep." Jonathan glanced over at Rick. "No offense."

"None taken," Rick assured him.

"We'll dig our way up," Jonathan finished, "and steal that book right out from under them."

"Are you sure we can find this secret compartment thing?" Rick asked.

"Oh, yes, if those beastly Americans haven't beaten us to it," Evy said. "No offense."

"None taken," Rick echoed.

"Hey, where'd our smelly little friend go?" Jonathan asked.

Tessa took a pause from her work to shrug in response to her brother's question. "I would guess that he went searching for some sort of treasure most likely. That's all he was after in the first place, after all."

* * *

><p>The gang decided to take a break from their work once their arms got too tried to perform well anyway. Evy had claimed one of the makeshift stools for her own seat with Rick doing the same. Tessa appeared perfectly content to sit on the ground, tracing designs into the dirt with the tip of her finger. Jonathan, on the other hand, decided to use his hammer as a sort of makeshift golf club, hitting rocks around with it.<p>

"So, let me get this straight," Rick said, "they ripped out your guts and then stuffed them in jars?"

"Then they take out your heart as well," Evy said. "Oh, and you know how they took out your brains?'

"Evy, I don't think we need to know this," Jonathan said.

"They take a sharp, red hot poker," Tessa said, "stick it up your nose, scramble things about a bit, and then rip it all out through your nostrils." She had the grace to look sheepish as Rick winced. "It's always been my favorite part to tell people."

"Cute," Rick said. "It sounds painful."

"It's called mummification," Evy pointed out, "you'll be dead when they do this."

"For the record if I don't make it out of here," Rick said, "don't put me down for mummification."

"Likewise," Jonathan agreed. He swung the hammer at another rock, only when this one hit the wall, the ceiling came down with it, sending something crashing to the ground.

Tessa had to scramble backwards to avoid getting hit by anything before shooting to her feet to see what it was. She recognized the shape of the mass of stone before her sister breathed the words out.

"Oh, my God, it's a…it's a sarcophagus…buried at the base of Anubis."

Tessa ran her hand across the surface of the sarcophagus, her heart pounding with something that had to be from the aftershocks of what had happened. "He must have been someone of great importance," She said.

"Or he did something very naughty," Evy added on.

Tessa tilted her head with a slight grimace to acknowledge the truth of this fact. She brushed away the sand beneath her hand, determined to read what lay beneath. She felt a touch of gratitude as Evy started to use her brush to help her clear it all away.

"Well, who is it?" Jonathan asked.

"He Who Shall Not Be Named," Tessa read. She pursed her lips together at the discovery. It didn't seem like that was what she should have found, although she couldn't explain why. She just felt like she was missing something, something very important.

Rick bent down to blow the rest of the sand away to reveal a familiar indent in the stone. "This looks like some sort of lock," He said.

"Well, whoever's in here sure wasn't getting out," Jonathan said.

"No kidding," Rick said. "It would take a month to break into this thing without a key."

"A key," Evy echoed. "A key! A key! Now that's what he was talking about!" She turned around to rummage through the bag on the ground behind her.

"Who was talking about what?" Rick asked.

"The man!" Evy said. "The man on the barge the one with the hook. He was looking for a key." She whirled back around with the box in her hand, pressing it so that it opened up.

"Hey, that's mine," Jonathan said.

Evy paid no mind to him, however, placing the unfolded box down into the indent on the sarcophagus.

It was a perfect fit.

* * *

><p>Tessa lay back against her sister as Evy ran her hands through the younger one's hair. It was meant to serve as a comfort, but nothing could really wash away the death of Hassan from the girl's mind. "What do you think killed him?" She asked.<p>

"Did you ever see him eat?" Jonathan asked.

"Our American friends had a little misfortune of their own today," Rick said. He took his place around the campfire as the others turned towards him. "Three of their diggers were…melted."

"_What_?" Evy said.

"How?" Jonathan asked.

"Salt acid," Rick said, "pressurized slat acid. Some kind of ancient booby trap."

"Maybe this place really is cursed," Jonathan said. He threw a rock near the fire only to have the whole thing flicker as if against an invisible wind before returning.

"Oh, for goodness sake, you two!" Evy exclaimed.

"You don't believe in curses, huh?" Rick asked.

"No, I don't," Evy said. "If I can see it, if I can touch it then it's real, that's what I believe."

"I believe in being prepared." Rick could sense the eyes of the youngest Carnahan on him as he cocked his gun and he cast her what he hoped was a reassuring smile.

"Let's see what friend the warden believed in." Jonathan lifted up the man's bag before sticking his hand in for a few long moments. Then he let out a yelp, yanking his hand back in a way that made everyone jump.

"What is it?" Tessa demanded.

"Just a broken bottle," Jonathan hastily assured her. He reached back into the bag to lift it out as proof. "Why it's twelve years old! Well, he may have been a stinky fellow, but he had good taste." He popped the crock out to take a deep swig.

Tessa was about to ask if she would be allowed to try some when she heard a horse neigh. What was even more strange, however, was the way Rick tensed at the sound.

He stood up, handing his gun over to Evy, who took it rather clumsy. "Here hold this," He said. "Stay here."

"No, wait for me!" Evy said.

"Yes, wait!" Tessa agreed.

The girls scrambled up almost as one to follow after the man with their brother rolling his eyes as he went after them.

Whatever Tessa had expected to see, however, it was not a bunch of men dressed like the ones that had been on the ship, only this time on horses. They were running all throughout the camp with many of the occupants running in fear from them. Except for the Americans that was, who were shooting off their guns at whichever invaders they could hit. Tessa was almost surprised to feel more sad then relieved every time she saw one of the dark clothed men fall down.

* * *

><p>It didn't take long for Rick to realize that he was about to be cornered by the man whose mask he had managed to remove. He thought on his feet, whipping out his arm to catch one of the attackers as they ran past. He wrapped an arm around the person's neck drawing them back against him. It was only then that he realized that the proportions of the body were off. There were no hard, bulky parts to their build, everything was soft and rounded instead. He shot a quick glance over at the man he had been fighting and got his most of confirmation by how wide his eyes had become. He moved his free hand over to rip off the person's mask, mouth falling open as he was greeted with the face of a young girl.<p>

"You're a girl!" He exclaimed.

"_Woman_!" The girl snapped back.

Rick was about to respond when the man in front of him made to lunge forward. He yanked a piece of dynamite from his belt, bending down quickly to light the wick in the nearby fire. He held it out in front of him as a warning to the man to stop him from coming closer.

"Enough!" The man cried. He shouted out an Arabic word to his comrades to get them to stop as well. "We will shed no more blood. But not until my wife has been returned to us."

"Your…" Rick looked at the girl…_woman_…he held with raised eyebrows. "Oh, right, sorry." He released her immediately, glad that she did nothing more then glare at him before diving into her husband's arms.

"You must leave here," The man said. "Leave this place or die."

The girl pointed to something over Rick's shoulder, her expression as grave as her tone. "Especially you, my lady."

Rick glanced behind him to see who she was talking to, eyebrows shooting up when he saw that it was Tessa.

The girl looked just as baffled by the words. "You would kill me?" She demanded.

The older one shook her head in response. "None of us would dare too," She replied, "but there is another who might give you a worse fate."

"You have one day," The man said. He lifted his wife onto a horse before climbing on himself, steering the animal away from the camp as the rest of his men followed.

Rick waited until they were gone to pull out the wick to the dynamite. Then he headed over to Tessa, who was still watching the strangers ride away, and clasped her on the shoulder. His brow furrowed in concern at the way she started under his touch. "Hey, kid, are you okay?"

"Oh…" Tessa shook her head like a swimmer trying to clear their head after being in deep water. She offered him a small smile once she saw how anxious he still looked. "No, I'm fine. I thought you would be more concerned for my sister." Her smile widened in amusement at his confusion and she inclined her head to where Evy lay on her back in the sand.

Rick was rushing over to her hardly a second later to make sure that she was alright, leaving Tessa with the peace she needed to try to sort out those cryptic words.


	5. Reading From The Book

**Oh, dear Lord, am I sorry this took so long! I kept wanting to add in another scene, but it just wouldn't work and I had a bunch of college work to get done along with NaNoWriMo. On the upside, that's over now, and this story has many more chapters to come.**

* * *

><p>The stress of the night before was eclipsed by the excitement that came with the morning as it came time to open the sarcophagus. Evy was practically clapping her hands together as the men lugged it up against the wall and Tessa wasn't faring much better. "Oh, I've dreamt about this since I was a little girl!" She said.<p>

"You dream about dead guys?" Rick said.

"Oh, shush, I was the same way," Tessa said.

Rick turned towards Jonathan with raised eyebrows. "You have some very strange sisters, my friend," He said.

"Oh, believe me, I know," Jonathan said.

"Oh, look, the sacred spells have been chiseled off," Evy said. "This man must have been condemned not just in this life but in the next."

"Tough break," Rick said.

"Very tough," Tessa agreed.

Jonathan grunted as he twisted the key inside of the indent. "Yeah, I'm all tears," He said. "Now let's see who's inside this thing."

Tessa stood back with Evy as the men worked to pry the lid of the sarcophagus open. The strange feeling she had felt around the thing yesterday was even stronger now. She could have sworn that the hair on her body was standing up, but not in fear, more like in anticipation. Although she wasn't sure what the eagerness was for.

Evy let out a small cry as the lid finally popped off sending the mummy popping out towards them slightly. Tessa, on the hand, remained facing straight ahead, her heart beating so fast in her chest that she could have sworn everyone in the chamber could hear it. _For God's sake! _She thought to herself. _It's just a mummy, nothing you haven't seen back in the museum. So calm down!_

She did have to admit, however, that this mummy was different from the others that she had seen.

"Dear God, I hate it when these things do that!" Evy said.

"Is he suppose to look like that?" Rick asked.

"No, I've never seen a mummy look like this before," Evy replied. "He's still…still…"

"Juicy," The men said for her.

"Yes," Evy said. "He must be more than three thousand years old and yet it looks like he's still…decomposing."

Tessa began to move closer, examining how right her sister was about the mummy. The muscle on his body nearly appeared fresh in a certain light, unlike the dried out bodies she typically encountered. She realized that her arm was raising up, but thought nothing of it. It seemed like the most natural thing in the world just like moving her hand across the face in something almost like a caress.

She felt like she was being shaken awake from a dream as someone pushed her hand away from the mummy. Strong hands clasped around the upper half of her arms, all but lifting her away from the sarcophagus. She glanced upwards, blinking, once she was back on the ground to find Rick looking at her in concern.

"We do not touch the mummy," He told her.

"But I didn't touch the mummy!" Tessa defended.

"You were about to," Jonathan said.

Tessa might have continued to argue, but she was distracted as she realized that Rick was staring at the ground.

"Hey, look at this," He said.

She bent down with the rest around the sarcophagus lid, eyes widening as she saw the deep groves craved into the inside of it.

"What do you make of this?" Rick asked.

"My God, these marks were made with…" Evy trailed off as she fit her fingertips into one of them. "…fingernails. This man was buried alive."

Tessa was unprepared for the powerful wave of grief that swept over her, causing her to dig her nails into her palm in a fight to keep her composure. It was certainly horrible that such a thing could have happened, but she hadn't felt this level of misery since her parents died. She was drawn from her thoughts by her sister's next words.

"And he left a message."

Evy ran her fingers across the hieroglyphics as she read the translation aloud. "Death is only the beginning."

* * *

><p>Tessa had chosen a seat on the left side of Rick, not wanting to have to sit anywhere near Beni since there was something about him she didn't quite like. She was using a stick to poke at the fire with, hardly looking up as the Americans came over to join them.<p>

"Say, O'Connell, what do you think these babies will fetch back home?"

Tessa did glance up now, lifting her eyebrows as she saw that the three men were holding canopic jars. "You do know that those are used for storing the organs of the deceased after mummification, don't you?" She resisted the urge to roll her eyes in annoyance as the men only stared dumbfounded back at her.

Jonathan dismissed the matter with a wave of his hand. "Ah, but everything in there is probably dust by now, right?" He glanced over at his little sister, smile faltering as she shook her head at him.

"We hear you found yourself a nice, gooey mummy," Burns said. "Congratulations."

"You know, if you dry that fella out," Daniels said, "you might be able to sell him for firewood."

Rick tossed a mock chuckle back before patting Tessa on the back in an attempt to make her stop scowling viciously at the men. It was Evy that made the expression disappear with her words, however, as she approached the group.

"Look what I found."

Tessa twisted her head to look over at Beni. "You're in her seat," She informed him. She pursed her lips as Beni laughed weakly in reply.

"Now!" Rick ordered.

"Yup," Beni said, scurrying out of the seat.

Evy plopped down in the spot a moment later, holding out her hands to show what she had cupped inside of them. "Scarab skeletons, flesh eaters. I found them inside our friend's coffin. They can stay alive for years feasting on the flesh of a corpse. Unfortunately for our friend, he was still alive when they started eating him."

Tessa had been terrified by stories of scarabs as a child and now was no different. She couldn't stop herself from shuddering as she imagined what it must have been like to have to be trapped inside of a coffin with all of those things scurrying about. She felt an echo of the sadness that she had felt back underground, although she still couldn't be sure why it was there.

"So somebody threw these in with our guy," Rick said, "and then they slowly ate him alive?"

"Very slowly," Evy replied.

"Well he certainly wasn't a popular fellow when he planted him, was he?" Jonathan said.

"Well, he probably got a little to frisky with the pharaoh's daughter," Rick said.

Evy huffed out a laugh at this. "Well, according to my readings our friend suffered the Hom-Dai, the worst of all ancient Egyptian curses, one reserved only for the most evil of blasphemers. In all of my research, I've never heard of this curse actually being preformed."

"That bad, huh?" Rick asked.

Tessa shifted towards her sister, already catching on to the same awe that Evy had to be feeling. "They never used it because they feared it so. It's written that if a victim of the Hom-Dai should ever arise he would bring with him the ten plagues of Egypt."

* * *

><p>Tessa let out a groan as someone started to shake her gently awake. She could already tell from the shape of the hands who had to be doing it. "If it's before dawn, I'm disowning you," She grumbled.<p>

"Oh, shush," Evy whispered. "You have to see what I have!"

Tessa opened her eyes slowly while pushing up from her makeshift bed. "What could you possibly have to show me at this hour?" Her gaze shifted over to where her sister was gesturing only to have her eyebrows shoot up in shock. "The Book of the Dead? But how did you get your hands on…" She trailed off as she remembered where she had last seen the book. "You didn't."

"I had to," Evy defended. "I know how to get it open!"

The claim was enough to send Tessa scrambling to her feet as her sister rushed over to Jonathan. She knelt down before the small table where Evy had placed the book, only to jump as a voice came from behind her.

"That's called stealing, you know."

Evy didn't even spare Rick a glance as she plucked something carefully from Jonathan as he slept. "According to you and my brother, it's called borrowing." She went down on her knees next to the table, holding the box that she had taken from her brother.

Rick moved to join the girls, eyeing the book before them with a curious expression. "I thought the Book of Amun-Ra was made out of gold," He said.

"It is made out of gold," Evy said. "This isn't the Book of Amun-Ra. This is something else. I think this might be the Book of the Dead." The corners of her mouth turned up in a smile as the squeezed the sides of the box until it unfurled out into its key shape.

"The Book of the Dead?" Rick said. "Are you sure you want to be playing around with this thing?'

Evy placed the key into the indent in the book where it fit perfectly just like with the sarcophagus. "It's just a book, no harm ever came from reading a book." She turned the device until the clasps on the book came undone, allowing her to open the book.

However, as she did so the campfire nearly went out, as if it had been struck by some sort of invisible wind.

"That happens a lot around here." Rick tried to exchange a look over how strange this all was with Tessa, but all of her attention was focused on the book. He gave up with a sigh, turning towards Evy instead. "What does it say?" He asked.

"Amun-Ra…Amun-Day." Evy glanced over at the American, pressing her lips together so she wouldn't laugh at how confused he looked. "It speaks of the night and of the day." She was about to turn back to read the rest of the incantation until she realized that someone was already doing so. She turned towards her sister with an expression that started out as bewilderment but switched to concern a moment later.

Tessa was reading from the book, but there was an absent look in her eyes, as though she wasn't even looking at the words. It was a trance that didn't end until the final words passed her lips, followed by a cry from somewhere in the camp that made them all nearly jump out of their skin.

"No, you must not read from the book!"

The three of them turned to see Dr. Chamberlain stumbling towards them. They weren't able to focus on him for long, however, for the rest of the camp was soon awakening as well. Everyone gathered into the same place, staring out at the horizon were a dark cloud of _something _could be seen approaching.

It wasn't until it began to get closer that they were able to see what it was: _locus_.

Rick grabbed hold of each of the Carnahan sisters by the wrist, dragging them back towards the dig site as the swarm began to descend upon the camp.

Tessa looked back over her shoulder at the sound of screams, gasping as the locus dove down on the workers. "Shouldn't we—"

"There's nothing we can do," Rick snapped. "Now run!"


	6. Facing The Past

The Carnahan siblings crept through the corridors with Rick leading the way with his torch thrust out ahead of him. Everything had gone fine so far so it came as a surprise as the ground began to shake bellow them. All of them were so preoccupied with keeping steady that it took them a minute to realize that there was a small mound pushing up from the sand. That was all it took, however, for a mass of black insects to come pouring out from the pile of sand.

"Scarabs!" Tessa shrieked.

No one needed any other form of encouragement to turn and run in the opposite direction as fast as possible. Rick threw his torch back at the bugs before turning to fire his gun at the insects as he moved backwards, gesturing for the others to keep going.

They dashed through the first side passage that appeared, heading up the bridge that lead up to the next way out. Jonathan jumped onto one of the nearby platforms with Rick grabbing onto Evy to do the same.

Tessa, on the other hand, leapt towards one of the outcrop on the other side of the bridge since it was closer to her. She inched her way across the area on which she stood, wanting to get as far away from the insects as possible. However, once she decided that it was safe enough for her to lean back against the wall to catch her breath, it gave way behind her. She tumbled down into the opening behind it with a small cry as the wall fell shut like a door after her.

She considered it a small blessing that the passage managed to deposit her on her feet, but she had no idea where it had brought her. All she could tell was that the place was darker then other places she had been since there weren't any troches to be found. She tensed for a moment as she heard a sound that sounded almost like someone was gagging. She relaxed once she turned around, however, to see that Burns was in the room with her.

"Oh, it's just you, Mr. Burns." Tessa moved over towards him, doing her best to keep her feet steady as she did. "Thank goodness, I was just starting to get a little scared. I got separated from the others you see and—" The rest of her words were lost in a gasp as Burns turned around to reveal that his eyes had disappeared. She stumbled backwards as she moved towards her, arms outstretched.

Every word Burns spoke came out sounding choked. "He took my eyes! _My eyes_!"

Tessa turned around in an effort to find a way back to the others so that she could get some help, only to find herself staring into a mummified face. Her mouth fell open in a scream before she could stop herself, pressing back against the wall as the mummy approached her. She glanced over at Burns, who had fallen onto the ground, although she knew he couldn't see the gesture. "Please help me," She begged.

"He took my tongue!" Burns replied.

"Please don't leave me," Tessa tried again. She gave a start at the mummy whirled back to face her, but something in her seemed to loosen as he stared at her with a strange interest. Something within her told her that there was nothing for her to fear, yet that was ridiculous since there was someone who was suppose to be _dead_ standing in front of her. She should want to flee from the place as quickly as possible, not step forward into his arms or any such nonsense. Her train of thought was broken, however, as the mummy spoke.

"Amisi?"

Tessa felt a part of her come undone at the mention of that name, the faint echo of feelings that she had been experiencing ever since she had arrived here bursting free. Another name slipped through her mouth without her even meaning for it to. "Imhotep?"

Something almost akin to a smile came onto the mummy's face. He took another step forward, holding out his hand to her as he did so. The words he spoke next were in ancient Egyptian, yet it felt as familiar on Tessa's ears as her given language. "Come to me my Princess Amisi."

The moment was broken, however, as Rick ran up from somewhere behind Tessa, grabbing her by the arm. "There you are! Will you quit playing hide-and-seek? Let's get out of here." He frowned as the girl kept staring straight ahead before turning to see what she was so concerned about. "Whoa!" The rest of the group had a similar reaction as they ran in after him.

The mummy only spared the newcomers a glance, however, before roaring at Rick, arms spread out menacingly.

Rick just yelled right back before shooting at the mummy. He spared Tessa a confused glance as she let out a cry as the creature fell before pushing her towards the way out. "Move!" Everyone ran through the exit with him, wanting to get to the surface as fast as possible.

* * *

><p>Candace kept her gun aimed at Dr. Chamberlain as the rest of the Medjai turned theirs towards the people coming up from the crypt. She swallowed hard, even though her throat felt constricted, as she noticed the way the eyes of the youngest member lingered upon the entrance to that cursed place. Why couldn't the girl taken heed of the warning she was given? If the creature had set eyes upon her then he surely would have recognized who she truly was, which meant that there was no hope left for her now.<p>

Ardeth pulled his mask away from his face as he took a step forward. "You were told to leave or die here. You refused. Now you may have killed us all. You have released the creature that we have feared for more than three thousand years."

"Relax, I got him," Rick said.

Candace let out an incredulous snort at such a claim. "No mortal weapon can kill such a creature!" She snapped. "He's not of this world." She winced faintly as two of her comrades dragged forward the man who had been attacked by the creature so that he could be returned to his friends.

"Bastards, what did you do to him?" Daniels demanded.

"We saved him," Ardeth shot back. "Saved him before the creature could finish his work. Now leave all of you, quickly, before he finishes you all. Yallah. Nimishi." He gestured his men forward with his arms. Candace was the only one to stay, although she did place her gun back in its holster. "Now we must go on the hunt and try and find a way to kill him."

"I already told you," Rick said, "I got him."

"Know this," Ardeth said, "this creature is the bringer of death. He will never eat, he will never sleep, he will never stop."

Candace was about to move forward to join her husband when she sensed that someone was watching her. She turned to find the gaze of the girl who wore that familiar face. She found it hard to hold any anger towards the other, even though she was linked to the resurrection of the creature.

The girl—_Tessa—_took a step forward, her brow furrowed downwards. "I'm sorry," She said, "but have we met somewhere before?"

Candace couldn't resist the urge to place a subtle hint within her words. It wasn't like the girl wouldn't figure out eventually, after all, at the rate things were going. "Maybe in another life."

"What?" Henderson scoffed. "That stuff is all make believe."

Candace arched a brow in response. "Oh, like mummies, you mean?" A smirk curled onto her lips at how the man's face turned ashen, eyes sparkling with delight as Tessa attempted to hide a chuckle behind her hand.

Ardeth shook his head with a grin of his own. "Some things never change," He murmured.


	7. Plagues and Encounters

Rick strode into Evy's room with two of her dresses in each hand. He wasn't surprised in slightest to see Tessa there as well. The sisters had hardly been apart since this whole thing had begun since the older one had taken it upon herself to play the mother figure. Although, based on what he knew about the Carnahan family, she might have always filled that role for her younger sister.

"I thought you said that you didn't believe in that fair tales and hokum stuff." He shot a sharp glance at the fluffy white Persian cat that was sitting on top of Evy's suitcase. "Shoo!"

Evy snatched the cat up into her arms as Rick flung her suitcase open. "H—Having an encounter with a three thousand year old walking, talking corpse does tend to convert one." She passed the cat into her sister's arms so that she could yank the clothes back out of the suitcase the instant Rick turned his back to grab some more things.

"Forget it," Rick said. "We're out the door, down the hall and we're gone."

"Oh, no, we are not," Evy said.

"Oh, yes, we are," Rick mocked. He dumped another pile of clothes into the suitcase, only for them to be taken straight back out again.

"Oh, no, we are not," Evy snapped. "We woke him up, and we are going to stop him."

Rick turned around this time with a pile of books, which he dumped into Tessa's suitcase instead. "'We?'" he echoed. "What we? We didn't read that book." He did his best to ignore the way the younger one flinched guiltily. It wouldn't do any of them any good for his resolve to weaken now. "I told you not to play around with that thing. Didn't I tell you?"

Tessa placed the cat down on the bed before gathering all of the books out of her suitcase. "Yes, alright, so it was all my fault then. I woke him up and therefore I should help to stop him." It didn't really sound as though her heart was in the last part of that declaration, however.

She plunked the books back down on the vanity just as Rick tossed another load of them into her suitcase. "Yeah?" He said. "How? You heard the man—no mortal weapons can kill this guy."

Evy began to collect the books that he was trying to load back this time. "Then we are just going to have to find some immortal ones." She wrangled her sister's typewriter out of his hands with her free arm so that she could place it back where it belonged with the books on the vanity.

"There you go with that 'we' again," Rick said.

"Will you listen to me?" Evy said. "We have to do—" She stopped after slamming the suitcase down without realizing that Rick still had his hands on it.

Tessa winced as the American let out a yelp of pain before yanking his hands out. He walked around towards the other side of the bed with Evy following after him.

"Once this creature has been reborn his curse is going to spread until the whole of the Earth is destroyed."

"Yeah?" Rick snapped. "Is that my problem?"

"Well, it is everybody's problem," Evy shot back.

"Evelyn, I appreciate you saving my life and all," Rick said, "but when I signed on I agreed to take you there and to bring you back. I have done that. End of job. End of story. Contract terminated."

"That's all I am to you?" Evy asked. "A contract?"

"Look you can either tag along with me," Rick said, "or you can stay here and try and save the world! What's it gonna be?"

Evy answered in a voice that was low, yet firm. "I'm staying."

"Fine!" Rick said.

"Fine," Evy echoed.

"Fine," Rick tossed back. Then he was out the door, not allowing the woman to have the last word in their argument.

* * *

><p>Rick knocked his shot glass against those of Jonathan and the Americans', all of whom he had reunited with in the bar. "Good luck, boys," he said.<p>

Each of them brought their glasses to their lips to tip them back, hoping that that alcohol would help rebuild what had become of their nerves. They wound up spitting it out the moment it was in their mouths, however, along with every other patron in the bar.

"Sweet Jesus!" Henderson said. "Tasted just like—"

Rick found himself staring at the fountain as he brought his head up and after he saw what had happened to it, he let his glass fall to the ground. "Blood."

Jonathan stared at the blood flowing from the fountain with the others, although his voice was steady as he drew a quote from memory. "'And the rivers and waters of Egypt ran red and were as blood.'"

"He's here," Rick murmured.

* * *

><p>Tessa had been helping her sister research how to fight against the mummy until Evy had decided that their efforts would be more productive outside. So she had followed the older one out of the hotel, keeping an eye out for anything strange well the other kept her own gaze fixed on the book in her hands. Neither of them paid much attention to the sudden boom of thunder over their heads. Not like they did to the voice that came from behind them.<p>

"Oh, Evelyn, Tessa!"

Evy lowered her book to turn towards Rick with a mocking smile. "Oh, so you're still here," she said.

Rick didn't even bother to rise to the bait. "We've got problems," he said.

All three of them looked up at the loud claps of thunder to find a dark cloud spreading out across the sky with something that looked suspiciously like fire falling from it. It wasn't until the screams began as it got closer that they realized how right their idea was.

Rick grabbed hold of the Carnahan sisters by their arms, pulling them back towards the entrance to the hotel.

Tessa shut her eyes as they moved so that she wouldn't have to see the people being struck by flames, but that didn't mean that she couldn't hear their screams. She dared to look again once they came to a stop, gasping as she saw buildings crumbling as they were struck. Her brow furrowed as she heard a whimpering from behind her, however.

Rick must have heard it too since he turned around, eyes narrowing as he saw Beni on the stairs. "Hey!" He grabbed the other man, throwing him back against the wall. "Beni, you little stinkweed. Where you been?" He was distracted by the sound of a familiar roar coming from somewhere higher up, which Beni took as an opportunity to slip away.

Rick resisted the urge to follow after him, reaching for a gun from his hostler before heading up the stairs with the girls following after him. He insisted on heading into the room first, although this didn't give him enough time to warn the girls before they saw the dried remains of what had once been Burns for themselves.

He snapped his gun over to the fireplace a second later as he heard the sounds that were coming from it.

The mummy was standing there, his body twisting as it took on layers of new muscle, which it had apparently gained from draining Burns. It wasn't a major transformation but once he turned to face them he had definitely gained more muscle and, through that, facial definition.

"We are in serious trouble," Rick said. He shot at the creature as it approached, but he had to run out of bullets eventually and once he had he found himself being thrown backwards. It was a small comfort that he managed to land on Jonathan and the other two Americans so that his fall was cushioned.

Evy stepped in front of Tessa as the mummy turned towards them, taking on a defensive stance. She let out a small gasp as her sister pushed her towards the men instead so that she wouldn't get harmed.

Tessa shot her older sister an apologetic look before her eyes snapped back to the mummy as he approached. She moved backwards until her back was pressed against the bookcases and she could go no further. She knew that she should feel afraid, yet the prickling beneath her skin felt more like eagerness then fear.

"You saved me from the undead," The mummy said. "I thank you."

Ancient Egyptian was one of the languages that Tessa had been taught by Evy so it came easy upon her tongue as she answered him. "You are welcome, my priest."

The eyes of the mummy seemed to light up with delight at such a response. Then he closed them as he leaned in towards her.

It didn't take a genius to figure out what he was trying to do to her, but Tessa remained frozen. She curled her hands into fists as the two sides of her warred with each other more then they ever had. There was one voice insisting that she should try to escape while another, more powerful one was all but screaming that she should remain exactly where she was.

She was saved from making a decision, however, as the mummy's head whipped around at the sound of the keys on the piano being pressed. He gasped as the cat meowed under his stare then he whirled around, disappearing from the room in a whirl of sand.

Evy raced over to her sister, gathering the girl into her arms. Tessa burrowed her way into the embrace without a question, shutting her eyes as she tried to force away the echoes of disappointment lingering inside of her.

"We are in very serious trouble," Rick said.

And Tessa found that she had to agree with him on that.


	8. The Real You

**This chapter is far too short, I know, but the next chapter will be longer, I promise. And you won't have to wait forever for it either. **

* * *

><p>Evy lead the way through the corridors of the museum, although she made sure that Tessa remained by her side. She didn't want to let the girl out of her sight after what had happened back at the hotel.<p>

"He does seem to like Tessa," Jonathan spoke up.

Rick shot a glance layered with hidden concern at the girl in question. "Yeah, what's that about?" he asked.

"What's this guy want, anyway?" Henderson demanded

"There's only one person I know," Evy said, "that can possibly give us any answers." She entered the main room where she had hoped to find the curator only to stop short. She had managed to find the curator, but he had company in the form of two of the Medjai. "You!"

"Miss Carnahan," Dr. Bey said. He regarded the men, all of whom had drawn their guns, with raised eyebrows. "Gentlemen."

"What are they doing here?" Evy demanded.

"Always the hostile tone," Candace muttered. She rolled her eyes as her husband shot her a stern glance.

"Do you really want to know," Dr. Bey asked, "or would you prefer to just shot us?"

"After what I just saw," Rick said, "I'm willing to go on a little faith here." He tucked his gun back into its holster with the rest of the men following suit.

Dr. Bey waited until everyone had settled down somewhere to begin to explain things. "We are part of an ancient secret society. For over three thousand years we have guarded the City of the Dead. We are sworn at manhood…" He trailed off as Candace cleared her throat loudly, shooting him a firm glance. "…And in some cases _womanhood_ to do any and all in our power to sop the High Priest Imhotep from being reborn into this world."

"Now, because of you, we have failed," Ardeth said.

"Way to be blunt," Candace hissed at him.

"And you think this justified the killing of innocent people?" Evy said.

"To stop this creature?" Dr. Bey asked. He answered his own question with Ardeth speaking with him. "Yes!"

Rick held up a finger to gain their attention. "Question: Why doesn't he like cats?" he asked.

"Cats are the guardians of the underworld," Candace said. "He will fear them until he is fully regenerated."

"And then he will fear nothing," Ardeth said. He seemed confused by the whap on the chest he received from his wife for not allowing her to finish with the line instead.

"Yeah, and you know how he gets hisself fully regenerated?" Daniels spoke up.

"By killin' everyone who opened that chest," Henderson said.

"And suckin' 'em dry, that's how!" Daniels said, voice cracking a little in fear.

Evy frowned at Jonathan as she noticed him playing with the string for the bow of the mannequin he was leaning against. "Jonathan, will you stop playing with that," she said.

Tessa strode forwards now, unable to keep her silence anymore. If anyone would be able to help her figure out the strange reactions that she had been having then it would be the Medjai or, at least, that was what she hoped. "When I saw him alive at Hamunaptra, he called Amisi." She could tell by the recognition that filled the men's eyes, along with the worried glances they exchanged with one another, that she had made the right choice in speaking up. It was the expression on Candace's face, however, as if she had been expecting such a thing all along that was confusing. "And then just now in Mr. Burns' quarters, he… Well, he tried to kiss me."

"It's because of his love for Amisi that he was cursed," Dr. Bey said. "Apparently even after three thousand years—"

"He is still in love with her," Ardeth finished.

Evy stepped forward to place a comforting hand on her sister's shoulder. "Yes, well, that's very romantic," she said, "but what has it got to do with my sister?"

Ardeth ignored the question, focusing his words on Dr. Bey instead. "Perhaps he will once again try to raise her from the dead."

"And the girl shall be the human sacrifice then?" Dr. Bey asked.

Tessa stumbled back against Evy with her eyes wide in shock. Was that all it really was? She was just suppose to be some sort of sacrifice to bring back an old lover and nothing else? She wanted to slap herself for that last question. What else could she be to someone who had been dead for over three thousand years?

"Alright, that's enough!" Everyone turned towards Candace with startled expressions as she burst into the center of the circle. She shot a glare over at her husband and Dr. Bey. "You two are scaring this poor girl for no reason at all. Dr. Bey, you're not like me so I understand why you wouldn't know, but Ardeth, I already told you who this girl truly is."

Ardeth took a step towards his wife, hands held up in a gesture meant to pacify, although there was a warning tone in his voice. "Candace, you cannot know for certain."

"You think I wouldn't remember her face?" Candace demanded. She sighed, allowing her words to soften as she fixed him with a pleading look. "Wouldn't you want to know if it was about your life with me?"

"Our situation is completely different from theirs," Ardeth said.

"Um, sorry to cut in," Rick said, "but what exactly are you talking about?"

Candace took a deep breath before answering him in complete honesty, despite the words that Ardeth hissed at her Arabic, warning her not to. "We're talking about how four of the people in this room are reincarnations of someone from ancient Egypt just like Ardeth and me."

There was a long silence after her words as everyone just started at her until Rick decided to break it. "Right, so that wasn't really what I was expecting there."

"And I suppose you have actual truth of this?" Evy sputtered.

Candace ignored the question, leveling her gaze on Tessa, who stared right back at her. "You've been having all sorts of strange feelings since you were in Hamunaptra, haven't you? There are emotions that don't make sense for you to be feeling and beliefs that are always warring with another side of you."

"Yes," Tessa breathed. "But how did you know all of that?"

"I know it, because I use to be the same way," Candace said. "Until I remembered my past life with Ardeth." She sent her husband a fond look that he couldn't help returning with a small smile.

"Do you know about what my past life was?" Tessa demanded.

Candace's expression was solemn as she turned back to her. "Yes, I know, and I can tell you it to." She let her face break out into a smile, clapping her hands together. "Everyone get comfortable now. It's time for a story."

* * *

><p>Tessa rubbed a hand across her face as the story came to an end. The whole thing was filled with such tragedy that her heart would have ached for its characters even if she didn't already feel a personal connection to them. Still, it made her wonder, if she was suppose to be the reincarnation of Amisi then were all of those emotions that had risen up within her, her own or those of Imhotep's former lover?<p>

She looked up as a hand came down on her shoulder, giving it a comfortable squeeze. She wasn't too surprised to see that Candace was the one who was there. "Who does it all belong to?" she asked. She knew that she wouldn't have to explain what she meant, not with this person.

The small smile that Candace offered was a gentle one. "Both of you." she replied. "You are Amisi and she is you. You aren't two separate entities. So whatever you feel is just your reaction to what his happening with the addition of her memories."

"But I don't have her memories," Tessa said. "And, besides, that's all in the past, it won't do us any good now."

"On the contrary, it may just give us time we need," Dr. Bey said, "to kill the creature."

Tessa bit down hard on her lip at how casually he was able to make such a statement. Imhotep was harming innocent people through his curse, which she hated, so she should want him destroyed just as much. And yet, despite how much her mind believed in it, she couldn't make her heart do the same.

Candace patted her shoulder before moving away to give the other girl space. The rueful expression on her face made it seem as if she was able to understand how she felt.

Ardeth, on the other hand, was moving into the center of the circle with his eyes focused on something above. "We will need all the help we can get. His powers are growing."

Everyone rose to stare upwards at one of the windows where the moon could be seen moving to block the sun.

Jonathan let loose another quote, although his words were heavier this time. "And he stretched forth his hand towards the heavens and there was darkness throughout the land of Egypt.


	9. Dreams

**Two chapters today since this one was so short. **

* * *

><p>Evy was striding across the expanse of one of the rooms back at the hotel. "We must stop him from regenerating," she said. She stopped where she was, turning on her heel to face the others. "Who opened that chest?"<p>

"There was me and Daniels here," Henderson replied. "Oh, and Burns, of course."

"And that Egyptologist fellow," Daniels added.

"What about my buddy Beni?" Rick asked.

"No, he scrammed outa there," Daniels said, "before we opened the damned thing."

"Yeah, he was the smart one," Henderson said.

Rick cast an amused grin over at Tessa as she let out a snort while rolling her eyes. "Yeah, that sounds like Beni," he said.

"We must find the Egyptologist," Evy said, "and bring him back to the safety of the fort before the creature can get to him."

"Right," Rick said. He pointed towards the youngest Carnahan. "She stays here. The rest of you, come with me." The decision seemed simple enough to him so he couldn't understand why everyone started to protest the moment after he had spoken.

"I'm not just going to let you leave me here!" Tessa said. "You're acting like I won't be able to help you, which I _know_ I can!" Her brow furrowed as he started to approach her. "Rick, what are you doing?" She let out a yelp as he hoisted her up over his shoulder, carrying her off towards the doors to her room, which he opened with his free hand. "Jonathan, make him put me down!"

"Um, sorry, but he's a bit…tall," Jonathan said.

"You are rubbish for an older brother!" Tessa snapped. She was scrambling off the bed hardly a second after Rick plopped her down on it, but he still reached the doors before she did.

He turned back to face her once he was there, not afraid of her wrath in the slightest. "Look, kid, I like you, really I do, but your what he wants and I'm not gonna use you for bait." Then he shut the doors in her face, locking them quickly before she could try to burst free.

He grabbed Daniels by the collar, whirling the man around in front of him. "This door doesn't open," he said. "She doesn't come out and no one goes in, right?" He wasn't going to let some girl go prancing out after some all-powerful mummy, no matter who she was supposedly reincarnated from.

"Right," Daniels echoed.

Rick handed the key over to the other man before turning towards the two he was bringing with him. "Let's go, Evy, Jonathan."

Evy nodded, heading over to stand by his side, but her brother lingered in his seat at the table. "Oh, I thought I could just stay at the fort and, uh, reconnoiter."

"Now!" Rick snapped.

Jonathan stumbled up from his seat at the tone of the command. "Yeah, right," he said. "We're just gonna rescue the Egyptologist."

* * *

><p>Tessa had changed into her nightgown, deciding that she might as well try to sleep while she had the chance. This would be her first proper rest in a real bed since their return from Hamunaptra and the events of that day had been enough to wear her out.<p>

Still, she had only managed to settle into a light doze with true, heavy slumber still alluding her. There were snippets of things that kept flashing behind her eyelids, slipping away each time she tried to hold onto to them so that she could see what they were. It caused her to shift within the bed in frustration until a soft voice broke into her dreams.

"Amisi."

She felt fingertips brushed across her forehead in a gesture meant to comfort. It was almost like the ones she had received from her mother and later Evy. The smooth press of a mouth over her own, however, was nothing like anything either of them would have given her. There was a chill to the kiss that would have been uncomfortable if it weren't for how tender it was. It made her feel as though she was adored, perhaps even _worshipped_. She returned it without a thought, blindly wanting to give the person the same feeling in return.

Then she heard the sound of doors flying open, which was strange enough to cause her to come fully awake. Her eyes flew open then widened as she realized that she was being kissed by a _mummy_. She tried not to let her thoughts linger on how she felt strangely bereft as he pulled back from her. Besides, Rick was already giving her something else to focus on.

"Hey, get your ugly face off of her!"

Imhotep growled out words in ancient Egyptian that were to low to be translated before pushing Tessa behind him as he rose from the bed.

But Rick, as it turned out, had come prepared. "Look what I got." He held up the Persian cat from before, who hissed at the creature.

Imhotep let out a gasp then cast a glower at Rick before disappearing from the rooms in another sand storm.

Tessa scooted up against her headboard, pressing her fingers to her lips. Evy was at her side barely a moment later, wrapping her arms around her.

"You all right?" Rick asked.

"Well, I'm not sure," Jonathan answered.

Rick might have snapped at him if it weren't for the way that Tessa burst out into laughter at the comment. He exchanged a look of relief with Evy instead, beyond glad to have the girl in such an amused state instead of there being any tears.


	10. Finding and Losing

Evy lead the others up the flight of stairs that lead to the top level of the museum. "Well, according to legend the black book the Americans found at Hamunaptra is suppose to bring people back from the dead. Until now it was a notion I was unwilling to believe."

"Believe it, sister," Rick grumbled. "That's what brought our buddy back to life."

"Yes," Evy said, "and I'm thinking that if the black book can bring dead people back to life—"

"Then maybe the gold book can kill him," Rick finished for her.

"That's the myth," Evy said. "Now we just have to figure out where the gold book is hidden."

They were about to head off down the final floor when a distant chanting drew their attention. It wasn't until they got over to the window that they were able to realize that the word being repeated was a name—"Imhotep." And it was being spoken by a mass of people swarming the road down bellow.

"And last but not least," Jonathan said, "my favorite plague—boils and sores."

"They have become his slaves," Ardeth said. "So it has begun, the beginning of the end."

"Not quite yet, it hasn't," Evy said. "Come on."

* * *

><p>Tessa was almost tempted to ask someone to spare her a weapon of some sort as the banging began on the entrances down bellow. Instead, she focused on translating the writing on the stone slab along with her sister and Dr. Bey.<p>

Evy was the one who seemed to be making the most progress, however. "According to the Bembridge scholars," she said, "the golden book of Amun-Ra is located inside the statue of Anubis."

"That's where we found the black book," Daniels said.

"Exactly," Evy said.

"Looks like the old boys at Bembridge were mistaken," Jonathan said.

"Yes, they mixed the books up," Evy said. "Mixed up where they were buried. So if the black book is inside the statue of Anubis then the golden book must be inside—"

The rest of her words were swallowed up by the sound of the main door breaking open to let the crowds come swarming in. Tessa felt her fingers itch for something to defend herself with now more than ever.

"Come on, Evy," Jonathan hissed. "Faster."

"Patience is a virtue," Evy replied.

Rick turned back towards her with a forced grin. "Not right now it isn't," he said.

"Uh, I think I'll go and get the car started," Jonathan said. He was rushing off not a moment later, although no one made any effort to stop him. He might seem like a coward, but there was too much loyalty in him to leave his own family behind when they were in obvious danger.

"I've got it!" Evy cried. "The golden Book of Amun-Ra is at Hamunaptra inside the statue of Horus." She stepped away from the stone slab to wave her fist in the air. "Take that, Bembridge scholars!" she cried.

* * *

><p>Everyone scrambled out of the car after it crashed into barrels of water. Tessa didn't complain this time as Rick hoisted her out of the vehicle after her sister. She tried to scan the approaching crowds while she was up in the air for Daniels, who had been dragged out a while back, but couldn't find any sign of him. Her stomach twisted uncomfortably as she was placed back down on her feet for she realized that he must have suffered the same fate as his friends.<p>

She rushed back with the others, letting out a groan of frustration as she realized that there was a wall that stopped them from going anywhere.

Rick stood on the outskirts of the group with Ardeth, brandishing his gun and torch while the other did the same with his knife. Candace kept her place next to Tessa, the tip of the blade she held still stained with blood from where she had plunged into the hand of a man who had tried to drag the other girl from the car.

The crowds stopped chanting, parting to make way for their master, who moved confidently towards those he had been chasing.

"It's the creature," Dr. Bey said. "He's fully regenerated."

Tessa couldn't tear her eyes away from the man before her, finding it difficult to remember that he wasn't actually alive. The last time she had been close to him had been back in her room and there had still been parts of his face missing at that time. There were no traces of that now, however. It caused her chest to ache with a feeling that was far to close to longing for comfort.

Even the voice that Imhotep spoke with sounded more human than it had been, loosing the rough quality that had been there before. "Keetah mi pharos aja nilo, isirian."

Candace turned away with a hiss as Beni stepped forward to act as translator. "By the Gods, is he really going to try to say this?" she hissed.

"Apparently," Tessa murmured back.

"'Come with me, my princess,'" Beni said. "'It is time to make you mine forever.'"

"'For all eternity,' idiot," Tessa snapped. She bit her lip in an attempt to hide a smile as her words drew a chuckle from the ancient priest.

"Koontash dai na aja nilo." Imhotep extended his hand to her in what was a clear gesture to all those who couldn't understand his words.

"'Take my hand and I will spare your friends,'" Beni translated.

Evy turned towards Rick as he scoffed at the offer. "Have you got any bright ideas?" she asked.

"I'm thinking, I'm thinking," Rick muttered.

"You better think of something fast," Tessa said, "because if I get turned into a mummy, knowing that you let my siblings suffer, you're the first one I'm coming after." She took a step forward only to have Candace grab onto her arm. She glanced back at the other girl, shaking her head. "I have to do this," she whispered. "Please, just give me a chance to fix things."

Candace narrowed her eyes as she leaned in close to the younger girl. "Fine, but don't think we won't come rescue you."

"I wouldn't expect anything less," Tessa grinned. It slid from her lips, however, after she was released and began to move towards Imhotep. She slid her hand into the one still extended to her, sucking in her breath sharply as the fingers closed around hers like a vice. It came rushing out of her as she was pulled to his side. She felt so safe there that it was _ridiculous_.

"No." Rick had his gun pointed at the priest with a panicked expression.

"Don't!" Tessa said.

Ardeth grabbed onto the American's wrist, although he didn't try to force the gun down. "No!"

"He still has to take me to Hamunaptra," Tessa reminded him.

"She is right," Ardeth said. "Live today, fight tomorrow."

Rick tucked the gun back into its holster but dipped his torch in the direction of Imhotep. "I'll be seeing you again," He growled.

Imhotep only smirked in response as he turned to leave with what he had come for.

Tessa looked back over her shoulder to make sure that her friends were alright, nose wrinkling in disgust as she saw Beni take the puzzle box from her brother. She glanced up at Imhotep, letting her words slide into ancient Egyptian. "You better not have lied." She had her answer before he even placed it into words as he stared down at her with regret in his eyes.

"I'm sorry," Imhotep whispered. Then he tossed his head back to let loose the order. "Kill them all!" He held on tight to Tessa as the girl began to struggle against him, her words slipping between the two languages in her desperation.

"No! Let go of me! I won't let you do this!"

Eventually the only thing left to do was to let her head fall back and scream.

* * *

><p>Candace was about to demand what Rick thought he was doing by throwing the torch until she realized that it was only a distraction. She had never been happier to see a sewer hole and that was saying something. She let the Carnahan siblings be ushered towards it first.<p>

"What about our sister?" Evy demanded.

"We're gonna get her back!" Rick said. "Go!" He waited until the two of them had jumped down to turn to Candace. "I won't grab you since I remember how badly that worked out the first time."

"Why thank you," Candace said. She still hesitated, however, eyes fixed on Ardeth. He cast her a faint smile, however, before pressing a quick kiss to her lips.

"I'll be following right after you," He said. "Now go!"

Candace needed no further incentive to head down and the instant she had, Rick grabbed Ardeth by the collar. "You're next!" He announced.

The man followed his wife down, leaving only Dr. Bey to go. But when Rick looked up the man was fending off the mass of people with his sword. "Come on! Give me your hand!"

"You go!" Dr. Bey shouted back.

"Come on!" Rick demanded.

"Go!" The curator ordered.

In the end, the crowds were closing in too fast, leaving Rick with no choice but to do as he was told dropping down the sewer hole as quickly as he could.


	11. Return to Hamunaptra

**I'm sorry this took so long! I intended to get it all updated over winter break, but then my laptop was taken in for repairs and after that school took over my life.**

**I know that Tessa's interactions with Imhotep here might not be what you were expecting. I debated changing it, but in the end decided to keep it as it was. If you feel that it should have gone different than feel free to tell me. I'm open to criticism so long as it's constructive.**

* * *

><p>Tessa let out a small cry as she fell unceremoniously out of the sandstorm that appeared to be the ancient priest's main way of transport. She began to slap at the body sprawled across her legs, knowing that the creator of the storm would never allow such a thing to happen so it had to be Beni. "Get off, you slime ball! Get off!"<p>

She only managed to get a few hits in, however, before the man was being thrown off of her. She looked up with raised eyebrows to find Imhotep offering her hand out to her. She resisted the urge to take the assistance, however, batting his hand away as she pushed herself up onto her feet. She couldn't let herself forgive him for betraying his word, even given the chance that her friends might have escaped. Still, she was grateful that he had gotten rid that annoying man for her.

Neither of them paid much attention to Beni as he scrambled up from the ground to stand with them. "I need a new job," he groaned.

Tessa sunk her teeth into her lip as she took in the sight of the city a little ways ahead. "We're here," she murmured.

She frowned as she heard the sound of an engine buzzing since there weren't any cars around. That had to mean… She directed her gaze towards the sky, eyes widening as she realized that there was an airplane there. The grin that came onto her face was so wide that it actually hurt her cheeks to keep it there, but she couldn't make herself stop. Her friends were alive. _Alive_!

She was distracted from such happy thoughts, however, as Imhotep spread out his arms with a roar. The sand whipped up at his command to form an enormous wall like storm to follow after the airplane. It managed to avoid the sand, at first, only to get swallowed up a few minutes later.

Tessa whirled around to face Imhotep. "Stop it!" she demanded. "You'll kill them!"

The priest was too lost in his trance to hear her, but Beni gave an answer for him. "That's the idea."

The blunt tone of his voice caused Tessa to shudder. She cast a quick glance back at the storm to see if the airplane had emerged yet. Once she saw that it hadn't, she whipped around, pushing Beni out of the way on her way to Imhotep. She hesitated for a moment as she reached out her hands then realized that there was no time for her to do such a thing. She grabbed hold of his face while she still had the determination to do so, yanking his head forward until their mouths collided. She kept her eyes open so that she could stare back at him as his own flew open in surprise. She didn't release him until she heard the storm die down behind her. Her smile died on her on her lips, however, as she watched the aircraft crash into the sand.

She wasn't given the chance to wonder after the fates of those within it, however, for her arm was being gripped onto as Imhotep swirled into focus before her.

"Tell me the truth," he asked, "did you kiss me because you wanted to or to save your friends?"

Tessa kept her eyes locked with his just like she had only moments before. "A part of it was to protect them, yes," she said. "But…I did want to kiss you." She decided that it wouldn't hurt to give into the desires in her head for a short while. After all, hadn't she promised Candace that she would find a way to fix things?

Imhotep brushed the tips of his fingers across her cheek in a silent question, letting out a rough breath as she turned her face into the touch. He didn't give her a chance to take the action back, diving forward to claim her mouth as he hadn't been able to in three thousand years.

Beni turned away from the two of them with a wave of his hand. "Yeah, sure, take the girl," he grumbled. "You bastard."

* * *

><p>Jonathan stood back with the girls as Rick worked with Ardeth to move the rocks out of the way. "I'd take those bigger stones first. Take them from the top, otherwise the whole thing will cave in on us. Come on. Put your backs into it." He stopped once the two men turned around, staring at him in a way that made him all too clear of the fact that there two equally aggravated women near him. "Yes, well, you've got the idea. Chop-chop."<p>

He glanced around at the walls once the other two men had returned to work, noticing the jeweled beetles placed within it. He plucked one out from its pattern, holding it in the palm of his hand to examine it better. "Gents, you should come and have a look at this," he said. "Or at least the ladies should."

None of those that he addressed turned around, however, until he began to scream.

"What?" Rick demanded.

Jonathan thrust out his arm as an answer where a lump could be seen moving bellow. "It's in my arm!" he cried. "My arm!"

Evy pressed her hands to her mouth, but Candace lunged forward. "Hold him!" she ordered. Ardeth was quick to do as she requested, ripping the shoulder of Jonathan's shirt back so that she could better see her target. The man started to scream more after she whipped out her knife, but she made sure to dig it in as quickly as possible, flicking the beetle out before it could do any harm. "Ardeth taught me that," she announced proudly. She frowned in response to the arched eyebrows that she received from Evy. "What? You need to know these things when you grow up in the desert."

The beetle tried to rush back towards them once it was back on its legs, but Rick got rid of it with one straight shot.

Candace rolled her shoulders into a shrug. "I have to say," she admitted, "I rather like your way of getting rid of them too."

* * *

><p>Imhotep had just placed the Book of the Dead down on the altar when a bang echoed from somewhere else in the crypt.<p>

There was no doubt in Tessa's mind who it had to be. She found that she couldn't keep a small, amused smile from her lips as she spoke the name either. "Rick," she breathed.

Imhotep picked up a nearby jar, tipping the dust over into his hand, which he blew onto the wall besides him. It took only an inaction spoken in ancient Egyptian to make what had formerly seemed like engravings to begin to stir until two mummies broke forth from underneath the stone. They dipped a low bow to Imhotep, which he returned before gesturing off to his left. "Kill them and wake the others," he ordered.

Tessa grabbed onto the priest's arm before he could lower it. "Why do you insist on trying to kill my friends?" she demanded.

Imhotep moved his hand across her face in the mock of a caress just as he had once done back when he couldn't truly touch her without fear of it being noticed. "They have come to take you away from me," he said. "and that is something that I cannot allow. No matter who they might be."

* * *

><p>Evy noticed a familiar silver disc in the room they had entered. She was about to maneuver her way towards it so that she could tilt it in the right direction to give them light, but Rick did so for her with a shot from his gun. She found herself unable to scold him for it, however, since the action revealed the treasure hold in which they were standing.<p>

Candace shook her as she followed the others into the place. "Whoa," was all that she could say.

"Can you see—" Jonathan breathed.

"Yeah," Rick replied.

"Can you believe—"

"Yeah—"

"Can we just—"

"No."

The small group whirled around at a strange groaning noise to discover that there were mummies popping up from the sand.

"Who the hell are these guys?" Rick asked.

"Priests," Ardeth replied. "Imhotep's priests."

"Alright then," Rick said. Then with a nod of his head he began to fire off his guns with the rest of them. It wasn't enough to kill them, of course, but it did delay them enough for them to run away from them to regroup. It lead to them running down a corridor as Rick and Ardeth fired back at the mummies, but it worked to buy them time.

Evy cried out in triumph once she found the statue. "There he is!"

"Hello, Horus, old boy," Jonathan grinned.

Rick lit a stick of dynamite, tossing it back at the entrance, then hurrying everyone back behind the statue as it went off. He let them come back out once he had made sure that there was enough rubble covering the entrance. Then he began to work with Evy and Candace at the base of Horus. Or at least he did until he heard the familiar sounds of mummies from another doorway.

"Do these things ever quit?" Evy demanded.

"Keep digging," Ardeth said.

Rick lugged a box out hardly a minute later, letting Evy toss off the lid and push the coverings aside until the golden book was revealed. "The Book of Amun-Ra!" she exclaimed.

The moment was interrupted, however, as Ardeth fired off shotgun rounds at the mummified priests. He shook his head at his wife as he tried to approach. "Save the girl. I know that's what you want to do." He pressed a fierce, lingering kiss to her lips, stroking her face as he pulled away. "Kill the creature. I will see you when it is over." Then he was running down the corridor, firing at the mummies as he went.

"I am kicking your ass when this is over!" Candace cried after him.

Evy shook her head she grabbed onto the girl's arm to pull her after the others. "You know, given what I've learned about you these past few days, I really wouldn't be surprised if you did."


	12. Love or Death

**We're one chapter away from the finale! Thank you to everyone who has been such dedicated readers and reviewers. Hopefully you know who you are!**

* * *

><p>Tessa took a deep breath as she knelt down before the dark water that seemed to move like it was alive. A hand took hold of her chin, moving her head over to stare at the man next to her instead.<p>

"You are Amisi reincarnated," Imhotep said, "but only in body. I will bring the part of your soul that is missing back from the underworld and our love shall once again be whole." He released her chin as he smiled comfortingly at her. "It is time to remind you of who we are and who we are together. For our love is a true love, an eternal love, our souls mated together as one forever." He waved his hand across the waters of the dead, knowing that her eyes would now behold a different thing entirely. She would see the lives that they had once shared back within the past, as though she were actually back in her former body once more.

He watched as she was forced to relive the final moments of her past life. He smiled through the tender scenes, resisting the urge to turn away as he knew that the worst was to come. However, he didn't stop himself from flinching as her whole body tensed and the title of "sister" passed through her lips. She uttered her final promise to wait for him before her eyes slid shut, body crumpling backwards onto the floor.

Imhotep directed his gaze down towards the book, reading from it as he had so long ago. Only this time the soul that he summoned wasn't forced to flee from the body it descended upon. He placed the book to the side to bend over her body as her eyes fluttered awake with a gasp. And there was a recognition in her gaze as it settled on him that had not been there with this body before.

Tessa reached up to move hand in a slow arc across his face just like she had done as Amisi. "Imhotep," she breathed.

"Amisi." Imhotep was about to dip his head down to kiss her when a male voice rung out through the crypt.

"The Book of Amun-Ra! We found it, Tessa! We found it!"

"The Book of Amun-Ra," Imhotep murmured. He rose from his place by the pool, running his fingers across Tessa's forehead as he moved so she wouldn't fret.

"Shut up and get her out of there, Jonathan!" Evy cried. "Open the book. It's the only way to kill him. You have to open the book and find the inscription."

"Well, I can't open it!" Jonathan called back. "It's locked or something. We need the key, Evy!"

"It's inside his robes," Evy said. She was already rushing down with Candace towards where Tessa lay.

Imhotep tried to use his priests to keep them from her only to have Rick hack through them so that the girls could reach her.

Evy slid her arm underneath her sister to help prop her up, fearful of the strange look in the younger one's eyes. "Tessa, are you alright? What did he do to you?"

"I think he gave her back her memories," Candace said. "Although there's only one way to be sure." She shifted into the other girl's line of sight, using ancient Egyptian as she spoke. "Amisi, are you alright?"

Tessa beamed back at the other girl before lunging at her with a hug that nearly knocked them both over. "Oh, Isis, I thought that I would never be able to see you again!" Her brow furrowed as she pulled back slightly. "But if you're here then Ardeth should be too. I mean, your siblings, Nefertiti and Ramses, are here but I'm not sure what's—"

Evy gasped as Candace slapped her younger sister soundly across the face. The Medjai did grimace, however, as the other girl rubbed at the side of her face. "I'm really sorry," she said. "We just don't have enough time to ease you into this."

"No, that's alright, I understand," Tessa said. "So, what's going on?"

"Ah, well, your man is on a rampage," Candace said. "Think you can help us stop him?"

Tessa nodded sharply before standing up with some help from the Medjai since she was still a little wobbly on her feet. She smiled reassuringly at her sister as Evy rose to join them. "We have so much to talk about later," she said.

* * *

><p>Jonathan peered down at the cover of the Book of Amun-Ra. "Here's an inscription," He said. "'Rasheem-Rasheem oola-Rasheem oola Kashka!" He rolled his eyes in disbelief as more mummies, ancient Medjai this came, marching out to face the other part of the group.<p>

"Oh, this keeps getting better and better," Rick said.

"Do something, Jonathan," Evy said.

"Me?" Jonathan said.

"You command them," Evy said.

"You have got to be joking," Jonathan said.

"Unfortunately she's not," Candace said. She was already preparing herself to fight along with Rick, passing a dagger over to Evy so that she could do the same.

"Finish the inscription on the cover, idiot," Tessa said. "Then you can control them."

Jonathan decided to do just that, darting into cover as Imhotep ordered the mummies to attack. Three of the Medjai headed straight towards Rick while the other three marched over towards the girls.

Evy readied her stance with the dagger as much as she knew how. "Let me guess," she said, "this is where the fun begins?"

Candace cast the woman a grin as she raised her own sword. "Oh, yeah," she replied.

* * *

><p>Tessa ran through the corridors that seemed like a maze as she tried to find her brother to help him. The mummies seemed completely uninterested in her, after all, so she might as well try to do something.<p>

"I can't figure out this last symbol," Jonathan called from somewhere.

"What does it look like?" Tessa asked.

"It's a, uh, a bird—a stork!" Jonathan replied.

Tessa whirled to miss the blade that Rick swung at one of the mummies her answer coming out choked as a result. "A—Ahmenophus!" Her eyes widened as she saw the Medjai mummies advancing on Rick, who was sprawled out on the ground, completely defenseless. "Jonathan, you need to read it now!"

"Uh, Hootash im Ahmenophus!" Jonathan cried out.

The Medjai stopped with the points of their blades pressed against Rick's throat then backed up, facing in a straight line, military fashion.

Imhotep stormed forward, darting frantically with his arms. "I command you to destroy him!" But no matter how much he repeated the order the Medjai wouldn't listen to him now.

Tessa moved in front of him, hands running soothingly along his sides. "Imhotep, you have to stop," she pleaded. "We have each other now, isn't that enough? There is no need for you to destroy people who have done nothing to you!"

"I think you should listen to the nice lady."

Imhotep pushed Tessa out of the way as Rick walked up behind her, holding his sword casually. The American waggled his fingers at the mummy in a mocking wave. "Hey there, remember me?" Then he swung his sword down to cut off the arm that still reached for the girl besides him. Not that it did much good since the priest only threw the man away with the limb he still had while reattaching the other.

He was so intent in taking care of Rick, however, that he didn't notice Tessa standing up with a triumphant smile on her face as she faced the others. "I've got it," she told them, holding up the puzzle box.

Evy took the device from her sister while Jonathan held the book. "Keep him busy," she called over to Rick.

"I don't think he can do much else," Candace said. She winced along with Tessa as the man was thrown yet again.

Evy tossed the key aside once she got the book open, not even really caring that Candace had managed to catch it. She began to flip hurriedly through the heavy pages, trying to find the proper spell.

"Hurry, Evy, hurry!" Jonathan said.

"You're not helping," Evy hissed.

Tessa nearly moved forward to help as she realized that Imhotep had lifted Rick up from the ground to choke him, but Candace held her back.

"Let Evy find the spell!" the Medjai insisted.

"Oh, I've got it!" Evy cried. "Kadeesh mal. Kadeesh mal. Pared oos. Pared oos."

Imhotep let Rick fall to the ground, staring in horror at the ghost chariot that came towards him at full speed. It ran straight through him before galloping away, dragging what seemed to be a part of him along with it.

Rick stumbled back towards the other, rubbing at his neck as he went. Yet, when he turned around, it was to find that Imhotep was still coming towards them. "I thought you said it was gonna kill him!" he snapped.

"Wait," Tessa said. She grabbed the dagger that from Evy that she was no longer using, moving to stand in front of Rick as the priest approached. He opened his mouth to speak to her once he was before her, but her only response was to slash the blade across the top of his chest. She ignored the way his eyes widened in betrayal, pressing her fingers the wound before she held them up to show him. It was what was on her fingers, after all, that was the true shock—_blood_.

"He's mortal," Evy said.

"Now will you listen to me?" Tessa demanded. She took a deep breath to steady her thoughts as much as herself. "Times have changed now, Imhotep. There is no one who would stand in the way of our love now." She ignored the snort she could hear from Rick and her brother. "We have the chance to have the life that we were denied before. There is nothing stopping us."

"But the Medjai—" Imhotep began.

"Will probably leave you be now that you're mortal," Candace said. "After all, Amisi was always the only person able to keep you in line." She crossed her arms over her chest, fixing the former mummy with a stern expression. "It will be necessary, of course, for the Medjai to check in from time to time to make sure that you haven't fallen back into your old ways."

Tessa shot an amused smile at her old—_very _old—friend. "And also as an excuse to come visit?" She asked.

"That too," Candace winked. Her gaze was solemn again as it shifted back towards Imhotep. "You have two choices, priest. Either your love or your death."

Imhotep stared down at the face that had never faded from his mind, even after three thousand years. He could see the flicker of fear there, the belief that he might choose to die instead of be with her, and that was enough to convince him of what he must do. He reached out to cup her cheek in his hand, drawing her in close. "It will always be you." The smile that illuminated her face was all he needed to know that he had made the right decision. He leaned in to seal his promise with a kiss, only to stop midway as Jonathan spoke up.

"Hey, no kissing in front of the brother!"

"Or me." Rich raised his eyebrows at the incredulous look that Tessa sent his way. "Hey, I just fought mummies for you, I think that I can cash in on that."

Imhotep felt a growl raise in his throat in reaction to all of the voices around him, speaking in a strange tongue he couldn't understand. It died in his throat, however, as lips pressed against his cheek.

"Don't worry, I'll teach you all you need to now," Tessa whispered.

It would be a new world that Imhotep would be stepping out into, but as long as he had his love by his side then he knew it would all be alright.


	13. The Future

**This is the end! Or at least it is when it comes to this story. There are still at least two others in the works right now. One is a main sequel to this one based somewhat around The Mummy Returns, except someone else will be returning in that story instead of Imhotep (feel free to guess!).**

**The other story being planned is one that will probably interest everyone who wanted to know more about Candace. My co-creator, IFoundHopeInYourHateForMe, and me actually planned out a detailed background story for her. None of it was able to work itself into the story as easily as I planned, however. So I plan on actually writing out her story so everyone can know how she became the strong Medjai woman she is in this story!**

* * *

><p>The group was watching what had what had once been Hamunaptra sink bellow the sand when a hand suddenly came down on Candace's shoulder. She whirled around, blade at the ready, only to glare at her grinning her husband.<p>

"You horrible man!" she yelled. "You made me think that you were dead!" Then she tossed her sword onto the ground, climbing up the camel on which he was sitting so that she could kiss him senseless.

Ardeth chuckled between each kiss that he was given. "I thought that I was suppose to be getting my ass kicked," he said.

"Later," Candace said. "Right now you should be glad that I'm too happy to want to do it."

"Oh, I am happy," Ardeth assured her. "Very happy." He turned towards the others who were watching them. "You've earned the respect and gratitude of me and my people."

Candace nudged him with her elbow. "What he means to say is that you have our friendship." She inclined her head towards all of them. "May Allah smile upon you always." She wagged her finger in the direction of Imhotep, turning her words back to ancient Egypt. "And you listen to everything your wife tells you."

"_Wife_?" Evy exclaimed.

"Oh, no," Jonathan groaned. "Please tell me you didn't do some ancient marriage nonsense."

"No, of course not!" Tessa said. "But Candace is already married and she's nineteen…"

Ardeth rolled his eyes towards the heavens. "You are being a bad influence, my love," he said.

"Oh, shush," Candace said. "I am reuniting true lovers, how is that bad?"

"Um, maybe just convince her to wait a few years, okay?" Rick suggested.

"Alright then," Candace said. "Although she was sixteen years old when she was given to my father in her past life."

Tessa wrinkled her nose as the others stared at the Medjai woman in astonishment. "Ugh, Candace, did you really have to go there?"

"Of course!" Candace chuckled.

"Goodbye, my friends," Ardeth said. "I am certain we will meet again." Then he directed his camel off towards the way that would lead to the home that they knew.

"Well, I guess we go home empty-handed…again," Jonathan said.

"I wouldn't say that," Rick said.

Evy looked up to see what he meant to find him staring right back at her.

"Oh, please!" Jonathan groaned. He shook his head as his youngest sister only squealed with delight as her sister and Rick began to kiss, making the priest chuckle next to her. He threw his hands up into the air, however, as he realized that Tessa had decided to kiss her lover as well. "I thought I said not… Oh, go at it then!" He turned towards the camel, tugging on its reigns. "How 'bout you, darling? Would you like a little kissy-wissy?"

The group settled onto the camels eventually, not even noticing the treasure each animal was carrying. They were too wrapped in the romances that they had found and the futures that could be built with the aid of them.


End file.
